petorama

Ask Yvette

Dear Yvette,

My dog is a pest at the dinner table. We have really tried hard not to feed people food, but it doesn't seem to work. When my mother-in-law comes over, the dog is right in her lap. Of course, my mother-in-law won't listen to me. Things are getting worse and worse. We get drooled on during dinner. I understand why our dog is mooching. I really do not want to blow my lid on my husband's mom, but I am at that point.

Frustrated

Dear Frustrated,

I do not blame you for feeling the way that you do. You really cannot blame the dog in this situation. He has been trained that some people pay out at the dinner table. Inconsistent rules are not the fault of the dog.

We need to find a solution to your dilemma that will rock the boat as little as possible. If you execute your training plan well, no one has to loose his or her cool.

For your first step, you need to teach this dog to lie on a mat on command. It is a fun and easy exercise to teach. You will need a clicker and some treats or kibble. Encourage the dog to walk a step or two toward a mat. As your dog's paws step on the mat, click and toss a treat onto the mat.

The click is very much like the whistles used by dolphin trainers. Just as the whistle means, “You've earned a fish for doing exactly what you are doing,” the click means, “Exactly what you are doing right now is perfect. You have earned a treat.” As the dog starts to figure out the puzzle, they start to repeat what you want them to do.

At this point, do not use a command. He doesn't understand yet and will start to tune you out. Wait until your dog goes to the mat with enthusiasm and confidence.

Over the long run, you want the dog to stay on the mat. If you make the dog leave the mat for their reward, they have no motivation to stay. Feed by tossing the kibble on the mat. It supports the work you are doing.

Keep your training sessions short to keep the enthusiasm level up. When your dog is running to the mat with enthusiasm, move the mat and work in a couple different locations. Now you can add the command.

Finally, ask for a down and a stay. Feed only on the mat. Build the quality of the stay by proofing your work. Add distractions and ask for more time so your dog can stay through the whole of supper.

Then you make it a habit. Your dog's new rule will be, “When food goes on the table, go to the mat and stay.” If they get up, ask them to go back to the mat. Dogs will stop doing things that waste their time and have no payout.

I find this to be a slick solution on a number of fronts. It's an easy solution where everyone wins. Your dog learns to mooch by going to a mat. If the dog is staying on the mat, your mother-in-law can spoil to her heart's content. You no longer have dog drool in your lap. Those are the solutions that make for the best strategies in my opinion.

Yvette is an award winning pet writer and pet behavior columnist. She also is the author of Meeting Milo, a North American dog bite prevention program to reduce the approximately 2 million children bit by dogs annually. She is the owner of AwesomeDogs.ca and works as a behavior consultant in London, Ontario.

This column was originally featured in The Londoner
See more of Yvette... www.awesomedogs.ca
www.meetingmilo.com

Yvette has 2 dogs of her own, KIKI and KAYA. Take a look...

Previous Questions

• Dear Yvette Our new puppy has accidents when p...
• Dear Yvette, Is there a difference between a c...
• Dear Yvette, We are looking for puppy classes,...
• Dear Yvette, My son had two rescued greyhounds...
• It seems there is some foot stomping going on in t...
• View All Questions